Come Back When You Can!
by MaggieFrost
Summary: They were supposed to meet back at the exact same spot in four years time, it was her own plan but what she didnt take into consideration was the fact that four years was an incredibly long time to be away from the friends who had become her family.
1. Chapter 1

Come back when you can – chapter one 

She sat on her spinning desk chair, one leg over the other as she leant into her desk, scrolling on her computer with a gleeful grin across her face, she clicked a couple of times and then squealed in delight and leaning back in her chair before spinning around. Clanking high heels came running up the hallway and with her hands resting behind her head she turned to face the door in time for her assistant Millicent Huxtable running into the room and hiding behind the door. Brooke looked at her with a mischievous grin knowing exactly what the dark haired girl was doing, she laughed as she watched Millicent hold her breath as her mother walked past and then sigh a breath of relief when she walked out of sight.

"Victoria getting to you again?" Brooke asked swaying the chair from side to side as Millicent walked over to the desk, Millicent was too polite to tell her what she was currently battling with her mother, Let's just say that when they were hiring for Brooke's assistant when Millicent walked through those big doors all clutzy and nervous, Victoria had detested the idea of hiring her and Brooke didn't know if it was the idea of having her own silent victory over her mother or if she saw admirable qualities in the brunette that sat in front of her, maybe it was both but the moment Brooke had hired her had become the moment that Victoria began to make not so subtle comments about Millicent and every single aspect of her existence. At that moment, the moment when Victoria would do anything in the world, say anything in the world to upset Millicent the reason Brooke had hired Millicent shone through, her pure resilience and the definite presence of admirable qualities. From that moment on Brooke has sort of been in awe of Millicent and everything she stands for. She smiled up to Millicent pretending that she had been listening to everything she had been saying in the past few minutes, she assumed that she had covered it when Millicent smiled back and walked out the door, dodging Brooke's friend and now model to the company Rachel as she walked in. It had made sense to hire Rachel, she was a gorgeous, she knew how to model and Brooke wasn't going to deny that it was nice to have a friendly face around. Leaving Tree Hill had been one of the hardest things for her to do, a lot harder than she ever thought it would be, watching her friends leave hadn't been easy either. She felt as though life had taken such dramatic turns for everyone within the high school group of friends and with every turn it was as though the group got further and further apart. She assumed that it wasn't the same for those that still lived in Tree Hill, but for herself and she felt so distant and so isolated being away and just the thought of how distant she had become from her best friend Peyton, her heart would literally hurt, it wasn't as though they were fighting and that is what made it so much harder, they had both began adjusting to the pace of their new lives and unfortunately those things such as phone calls and emails slipped through the cracks. From the brief conversations she was having she knew that Peyton was incredibly busy, running up and down the halls of the music world, no doubt taking it all by storm but then again another reason was definitely because Peyton was so far away from Lucas. Lucas was back in Tree Hill and Peyton was in LA and she knew that any moment that wasn't spent tirelessly working was spent on the other end of a phone call to her blonde boyfriend. But she had a plan, to soothe some of that isolation and distance between them all, she had it all organised it was going to be fantastic all she had to do was convince everyone else that it was a fantastic idea. She would have to start off with the closest. When she looked up she noticed that Rachel was blabbering away to herself, so she slowly transitioned into the conversation. "Wow that's great" she said hoping that that response deemed significant enough to the situation.

"What are you thinking Brooke Davis? Wild Party? Sleepover? Drunken Booze Fest?" Rachel asked with this cheeky look on her face wondering what life with her friend Brooke was going to spring on her now.

"I was thinking vacation" she said with a simple yet elegant Brooke Davis smile.

"Vegas? Tahiti? Paris? Oh please tell me it is Paris" she said getting more excited with every exotic location that fell from her lips.

"I was thinking a bit more local" she saw the distinct look of disappointment on her friends face "But only so everyone can come"

"Are you inviting boys Brooke Davis?" she asked again with the most mischievous of looks on her face.

"Actually I was thinking about having a bit of a high school reunion" she said with such fruitful glee.

X-x-x-x-x

Haley walked down the stairs of the two story home, they were still living in Debs house, you would think that living with your mother in law or even your mother would be unbearable at this stage of their lives, they were still young but with all that had happened to them in the past years they had matured dramatically. It was nice to be living with Deb; she helped Haley and Nathan juggle with the new demands of college and raising their beautiful baby boy Jamie. This week Deb was out of town visiting her brother Cooper, Nathan was at basketball training, Lucas was with him, and she had finally gotten Jamie down for a nap, she was feeling pretty happy with herself. She stood in the kitchen trying to find herself a snack in the fridge, her loose sweats clung to her petite figure, she noticed the silence a thought coming to her mind, she made sure the curtains were shut and the front door was locked, she checked the time to make sure she had adequate time before the boys would be back and she checked her phone to make sure that Nathan hadn't called or texted her to tell her that they were coming home earlier than expected. When she realised that nothing was stopping her she undid the zip of her jumper and threw her clothes down on a pile on the floor and took a moment to breathe in. Yes she could be a very self-conscious being, especially since the birth of her son but there was something in the act of standing naked in a room, not to seduce but to take a moment to take all that surrounded into her soul, it gave her this freedom that she sometimes thought that she no longer had. She was standing in the middle of the room her eyes closed, engulfed by thoughts and emotions when like on clockwork her mobile phone began to ring, she jumped and grabbed the closest thing to her and answered the phone, trying to calm herself down and catch her breath all at the same time.

"Hi this is Haley" she was so panicked that she had forgotten to check the caller id before she so ferociously answered the phone.

"Hey Tutor mum how are you doing?" there was this excitement in Brooke's voice, they truly hadn't spoken to each other in a while and she was craving conversation.

"I'm not naked" she said not sure exactly where the comment had come from. She heard Brooke nervously laugh before she cautiously breeched a new subject.

"What are you doing two weeks from today?" she asked swinging back on her desk chair, Rachel still sat in front of her but her face and attention was submerged within a magazine.

"Well the semesters over so Nathan and I don't have to go to school, so probably will just pick up some extra shifts at Karen's, maybe catch up with mum and dad why?"

"I was sitting in my big office and I was thinking about how I haven't laid eyes on you for nearly a year now and I just thought that maybe you would be interested in enjoying a lovely vacation with me"

"DRUNKEN BOOZE FEST" Rachel yelled over in the background, Brooke blocked the receiver and pointed at Rachel with this look on her face, she could hear Haley laughing in the background.

"Sounds like a great idea, but are you sure you want us to come? James is a bit of a handful and I doubt I will be very much fun at a 'drunken booze fest', we just wouldn't want to cramp your style" she said with her usual Haley James Scott laugh that made Brooke crave and pine for home, it was small things like voices and laughs that always reminded her of Tree Hill and make her miss it like crazy, she remembered sulking for an hour after receiving an joke via email from mouth, she had laughed at the joke that was so typically mouth and then the realisation that she hadn't hugged mouth in the longest time sunk in.

"Are you kidding me Miss HJS? I'm sure he is absolutely gorgeous"

"Oh he is" she said taking a moment to consider her son, she found herself doing this a lot lately, ever since he was born. Haley had fell in love with Jamie the second he was born into the world and each day that love grew stronger and stronger.

"Plus all of that is beside the point, I want a whole group holiday and we spent the last year of high school with Jamie in bump form so he is a member of the group, and I need some time with my godson anyway" she said with a smile.

"Okay well I will have to talk to Nathan about it but I reckon it sounds like a really great idea Brooke, We really miss you back here in Tree Hill"

"Thanks" she said not really one hundred per cent sure why she had responded that way, what she really wanted to say was 'I am missing you guys all like crazy' but she felt that if she actually said it aloud she would become a wreck, un-functional. "Oh Haley can you do me one more favour?"

"Anything Brooke" she said rearranging the blanket around her very naked body

"I need you to rope Luke in! I've got Mouth working on getting Skills to come, I've already convinced Rachel to come" she smiled feeling Haley's eyes roll across the phone line "And I'm just about to call Peyton now but I don't think I will be able to call Lucas today, I've got back to back meetings all afternoon and I know that the second I get on the phone to Luke I won't be able to hang up or shut up, plus from what I hear he practically lives with you so you have a higher chance of tracking him down anyway."

X-x-x-x-x-x

"Hello" she could tell just by the tone of her voice that her friend was incredibly distracted and probably doing ten things at the same time.

"Peyton Sawyer put down whatever you are doing this very minute" Brooke demanded with a smile

"Brooke Davis" she said as a broad smile appeared across her face, she felt her arm lag with the heavy book full of documents that she was supposed to be photocopying, this was her tenth trip to the photocopier this morning, she thought that she should just set up shop right there for the rest of the day.

"Have you put everything down?" she asked feeling instantly better for just hearing her best friend's voice

"I so wish I could, thank god I get a break soon" Brooke could tell that Peyton was exhausted

"What are you doing?" Brooke asked

"Photocopying"

"Your ass?" she asked with a smirk, making Peyton laugh really loud and it was the nicest sound she had heard in so long from her friend "What I actually meant was what are you doing for your break?"

"Probably just go home, try to catch up with Luke, actually I will probably just sleep" she said with this exhausted laugh

"Well I have to inform you that you will actually be at a beach house with me that week"

"Brooke, I would so love to, I really would and I hate doing this but you know what it's like juggling your work and juggling your relationship with Chase" Brooke made herself a mental note about telling Peyton about the break up "When you finally get a moment off you have to take advantage of it"

"Well I am glad you feel that way cause I just talked to Haley and Lucas is already on board" she knew that it was a lie, but it was only a small white lie, it wouldn't hurt. She knew that Haley had the powers to talk Lucas into anything and she had the power to talk Haley into anything for example the Sandy from grease costume at the Halloween party at TRIC.

X-x-x-x-x-x

The front door opened and she felt herself smile, her husband and her best friend were finally home and her son sat upon her hip. Back when Lucas originally joined the Ravens she never could have imagined a day that Lucas and Nathan would actually talk to each other and become the closest of friends and brothers, let alone that she would be married to the 'Jock' Nathan Scott and the mother to his child. Nathan walked into the room, greeted her with a 'hello' and a kiss before scooping their son out of her arms and giving her the look that said 'Lucas really needs to talk to someone and I think it should be you', she nodded in his direction and then looked to her blonde best friend, who looked more broody and slumped than usual.

"Hey Luke" she said walking over and throwing her arms around him "What's going on with you?"

"Are you and Nathan speaking with your telepathic marriage language again?" he asked with this smile that quickly disappeared when he delved deeper into his own thoughts

"Come sit down and talk to your old friend Haley" she said taking his hand and leading him over to the kitchen table "What's going on Luke? Is Karen okay? Lily?"

"There fine. In fact they are great; Andy is really taking care of them and adjusting to this whole kid thing"

"And you're upset because it should be Keith doing it all?" she asked putting a supportive hand on his arm.

"Yes! But no, Andy is a millionaire right?" he asked clearing the whole story past Haley, not knowing if she truly remembered, she nodded and waited for him to continue "Well he had a boat, and he and mum have decided that they want to take Lily away from Tree Hill and travel the world" she didn't know what to say, no way to comfort she knew exactly how he was feeling and she also knew that between them often silence was the best response "I'm going to miss them Hales. I've really been enjoying watching Lily grow up you know?"

"Yeah I do honey" she said squeezing his arm "When do they leave?"

"In about a month, but it's really a serious decision, I don't think they are coming back. Mum is shutting Karen's; she said at the moment it's all just temporary but I don't reckon she is going to come back" he said his world crumbling around him, Haley pulled his head onto her shoulder and threw her arms around him, placing a kiss on the crown of his head.

"Hey I've got something to take your mind off it all" she said as Lucas tilted his head in curiosity.

X-x-x-x-x-x

She walked into the foyer of her New York apartment; she unstrapped her high wedged shoes, walked to the kitchen, poured red wine into a steamed glass and then walked herself over to the couch. Brooke finally had a moment to herself, finally a moment to take a breath and register everything that had happen that day. Her phone rang and while she initially groaned at the idea of another business call or worse yet another call from her mother, she smiled as she registered who it actually was, she answered and before she even had a chance to say a greeting a voice beamed at her.

"Were in Baby, All of us, Nathan, James and me" Brooke waited for her to finish the sentence and as each second went past she regretted telling Peyton that Lucas was already on board "AND LUCAS" she breathed a sigh of relief.

To be continued!

*Authors Note* Will be writing a couple of one-offs and new stories on One Tree Hill and also will be updating my other stories soon, so keep an eye out. I have a story coming up about Lucas' reaction to Dan and his death in season 9 and I will also be doing a one-off about the last time Dan see's Lucas and his family and Lily at a another funeral. But I'll keep you posted. If anyone has an idea of families or couples or friendships that they would like me to write a story or involve more in a story just send me an email or write me a review and I would be happy to look into it!


	2. Chapter 2

Come back when you can – chapter two

It hadn't taken much convincing to get her boys into the idea of the trip, Lucas would fly to the moon if it meant he got to spend some quality time with Peyton, Jamie would go anywhere that the food was and Nathan was happy to follow anywhere that his wife and son were heading especially with some romantic convincing. So here she stood frantically rushing around her house, it took so much longer to get ready for things when you had a baby compared to pre-Jamie. Haley swept her long brown hair into a ponytail as her two slave boys took luggage to the car; she walked into the living room to where the two blondes sat in an armchair.

"It's time to go bubba" she said with a smile as both the attention of her gorgeous son and gorgeous mother in law, Haley lifted her son out of Debs arms and hoisted him onto her hip "Are you sure you will be okay?" she asked turning to Deb who stood up from the chair and began to walk up the hallway with Haley and Jamie at her side.

"I'll be fine, it's about time that you three had a little holiday, but you my little man better not walk until you get back to Nanny. Okay?" she asked as she held the little boys hands, Nathan and Lucas coming inside as they made it to the front door "I want kisses from my boys" she said kissing over her smiley grandsons face before being kissed on the cheek by Nathan and Haley "Uh-ah Lucas you don't get away that easy, I promised your mum that I would take care of you, so I'm starting early" she said with a smile as she put a finger to her cheek.

"Say bye-bye Nanny Deb" Haley said waving with one hand as she watched her son do the same and kissed his forehead. She walked to the car and buckled her smiling son into his car seat and passing him as many toys as he could grasp in his small hands before blowing him a raspberry and stepping away from the door to join Nathan and Lucas on the pathway facing Deb "Okay well we aren't that far away, call us if you need anything"

"You guys stop being the adults for five minutes and go have some fun" she said as she waved them off and walked back up to the front door as they began shutting doors and preparing for their journey. Haley sat in the back with Jamie, her tanned legs left bare by her denim shorts and lacy singlet, her eyes covered by her sunglasses, she passed her son the teething ring as Nathan assumed the drivers position and Lucas hopped in the passenger side, they had decided that they would all take turns driving but right now they were all happy with taking in the journey that they were about to embark on.

"So what is the music situation?" Lucas said with this pure smile as he rubbed his hands together and faced Haley

"I'm glad you asked" Haley said with a smirk as Nathan put the key in the ignition and the car was filled with a familiar tune that Lucas just couldn't work out, until the lyrics began and he groaned

'_Old McDonald had a farm ey I ey I oh and on that farm her had a chicken..." _The radio belted out as Haley did the same in the back of the car

"I knew I should have taken the ride from Mouth" he said as he put his hands on his head as Haley laughed and leaned forwards

"Just kidding Luke, actually Peyton sent everyone driving down a copy of a road mix so that we all get in the mood, and so that it sort of feels like we are all together even though we are travelling from different locations" she said as Nathan swapped the cd's and pressed play as he drove up the road. "Where going to have so much fun James L" she said playing with her sons feet as she chewed on his teething ring "You're going to get to see your aunties yeah"

X-x-x-x-x-x

She couldn't hide the fact that she was incredibly excited, not only did she finally get off work and take a chance to relax and rest, not only did she get to see her gorgeous boyfriend but she got to spend a week with her greatest friends and selected family, she got to see her best friend who she was dying without and she got to see the people who had become permanent fixtures in her life and then disappeared without notice or hesitation and things like that were harder to adjust to in her new life. Phone calls were never as good as the real thing, a hug was better in person than in word and stories were so much funnier when you actually got to see the expressions on the story teller's face. Peyton had just reached the outskirts of town; she lowered the roof of the comet and revved the car so that she could feel the wind in her hair. It was so nice to feel free, as though she could do what she wanted whenever she wanted, she had visited her dad the night before, they had sat up laughing and reminiscing about their lives, where they had begun and where they were right then and now. She had cried when she had watched him sail off in the dredging boat, she had missed him tremendously when he had left her in Tree Hill the last time and she always hated watching him leave, but she left that behind, she turned the radio up as it blasted through the open air and the wind ran wild through her blonde curls, a smile running across her face as she settled on the idea of getting to see her man in a couple of hours and getting to be held in his arms.

X-x-x-x-x-x

"Are you sure that I can't convince you to drop this whole big group holiday idea thing and fly you to France and hit the club scene?" Rachel asked draped across Brooke's car bonnet, Brooke trying to wheel her many bags from the doors of the elevator to the car boot

"You know you could be helping me with this" she said as Rachel dropped off the bonnet of the car and sashayed over to where Brooke stood dragging the bag

"Have you told them about Chase yet?" Rachel asked picking up another bag and speeding past Brooke before throwing the bag into the car and turning to Brooke

"Not exactly" Brooke said pulling a face that let Rachel know that by not exactly Brooke meant not at all "I just don't know how to bring it up, there is no time in our conversations to tell people that"

"You know how you could avoid it all together?" Rachel said sweeping her red hair behind her ear and smiling at her close friend

"Get in the car" she said with strain in her voice as she lifted the heavy suitcase into the boot of the car.

"So we can go to the airport and fly to Tahiti?" she asked with this hopeful grin on her face, hoping that Brooke would finally come to her senses and fly with her to paradise.

"Get in the car" she said trying to hide her smile within a smirk "We are going to the beach house to spend time with our friends" Brooke said as Rachel groaned "and by the way you're getting your suitcase out at the other end" she said jumping into the car with Rachel dragging behind.

X-x-x-x-x-x

"Skills hurry up" Mouth yelled into the open door that Junk and Fergie walked out of door with bags over their shoulders, throwing them into Mouth's really small car "What could possibly taking him so long?" he asked as he turned to Fergie who shrugs his shoulders in response.

"He's probably crying over Bevin again" Junk said with his back to the house as he faced Mouth "Or masturbating" he added with a shrug of his shoulders as both of the men beyond him cringed their faces in horror

"I'll have you know I'm doing neither" Skills said abruptly as he walked out of the apartment building causing Junk to jump

"Then what the hell took you so long? Lucas texted me half an hour ago and said they were hitting the road, if we are going to meet them at that diner and make the rest of the trip together we need to have left like five minutes ago" Mouth said getting all hot and bothered in his position of navigator, grabbing the map from Skills' hands and moving to the passenger side of the car as the rest of the boys found their way to a seat in the car "What are all these dots on the map?"

"I went through and highlighted every diner that serves pie, we are going to stop at every single one so that on the way back we know exactly where the best one is and we don't have to waste time" he said revelling with excitement in his own thought to a tee plan.

"I told you he was still messed up about this Bevin thing" Junk said doing up his seatbelt and sitting back in his chair as Skills readjusted his chair, giving Junk barely any foot room

"I'm so far from past that" he said putting the key into the ignition

"Yeah, that's why we're going on the great pie hunt" Fergie said with a smirk as the rest of the boys did the same, as Skills gave them all the look

"I guess you guys want to walk to the beach house" he said looking in the rear vision mirror and to the side to the suddenly serious faces "That's what I thought"

X-x-x-x-x-x

Haley walked from the counter to the assembled group sitting in the booth, all laughter and loudness that the patrons and workers of the small town diner seemed thrilled with yet slightly annoyed by. She was the only girl in the collective group, the six boys sitting squished into the small booth, her baby son sitting on the table, supported by his dad who kept two hands on either side of his body as little Jamie Scott laughed at the antics of his uncles Mouth and Skills who persisted to make funny faces at him.

"What are they doing to you baby boy?" she asked as she walked up to the table and the little blonde haired boy put his arms up to her, there was no denying that he was a mummies boy. Haley passed her glass to Lucas and scooped the baby up in her arms swinging him around before attempting to squish in with the boys. The little boy soon became restless in his mums arms as conversation continued around him.

"Come to me boy" Skills said opening his arms as Haley put little Jamie's kicking legs onto the table and walked him with just her arms no other movement required across the table to where Skills arms trapped him and hoisted him into the air, providing incredibly joy for the tiny boy. There was no doubt that with everyone moving away for college and the Tree Hill gang began to get smaller that the remaining ones grasped onto the others with as much force and need as they could, all becoming closer than they had ever been before in that short span of time. Skills had promised Haley back in high school that he had her back and little baby Scott's back as well and there was no doubt in Haley's mind that he was going to fulfil that promise, he was already doing that.

X-x-x-x-x-x

Two more hours and they were finally at the secluded beach town; all waiting patiently for the keys to arrive in Brooke's car, as each car rolled up there was celebration, embraces and many hugs. When Brooke finally did show up, they all together rolled into the house, appreciating the beautiful architecture of the house, before coming to the realisation that to get the best rooms they would have to fight for them, Haley threw Jamie to Nathan before running frantically up the hall and pushing Skills over.

To be continued


End file.
